Best of: Top 25: My favourite concert photos of 2019

As always, I can't separate the great performance from the great photo. Maybe someone else should go through my photos and look for the aesthetically best or technically best photos. As for me, here are my favourite 25 concert photos of 2019, from so many of the most amazing performances I was lucky enough to witness in 2019.

Thank you music, you may well have saved my life this year. Much love.

I have to send out a special thank you to all the wonderful industry people and artists who let me into the festivals and venues to make these photos and take in these shows, and to you for looking at the photos, reading my words, and listening to the music.

If you haven't checked them out yet, follow the links to my Favourite Songs of 2019 and Favourite Albums of 2019 posts. It was a great year for music!

July Talk are one of the best bands playing anywhere right now. They put on some of the most magnetic, engaging and empowering live shows. They're one of the most photogenic bands. No wonder they have two spots on this list. This is a shot of Leah Fay from July Talk's performance at Budweiser Gardens in London, Ontario.

Dizzy is one of my favourite bands, one of my most seen performers and one of the bands I've photographed the most. Katie Munshaw is such an emotive and passionate singer and performer, I always get amazing photos. This is one from the band's performance at The Great Hall's Longboat Hall for the Wolfe Island Winter Ball. 

This is my most-liked photo of the year on Instagram, so it must be the best, right? This shot does capture Aimee Interrupter interacting appreciatively with the crowd at Rebel. The band's music is so positive and empowering, and their live show is so engaging and super-fun. I'd see them any and every time I get the opportunity. I caught them both at Rebel and at The Danforth Music Hall this year.

My daughter turned me on to Naked Giants and I caught their live show at The Baby G. It was a super high energy and engrossing show. This is just one shot that captures the band's manic energy and intensity.

I've loved Rancid since I first heard "Time Bomb". Their ska-punk style is energizing as is their live show. The jump shot is one of the pinnacles of concert photography and one that I consider something I pretty much suck at. But I seem to be getting better at it. This show at Rebel was one of the musical highlights of my year.

PUP is an awesome band with great energy and they're so humble of their ascent to bigger and bigger shows, like this one at Echo Beach. I loved seeing Stefan Babcock riding this inflatable swan across the crowd. 

I've caught three Yungblud shows so far. He's an unstoppable force. This last show was probably the hardest to capture because of his sheer energy and speed. There are so many cool shots from this show, it was hard to pick from. This moody shot from the very start of the show at The Danforth Music Hall turned out pretty good, I think. Click on through for the rest of my shots.

Here's another shot from July Talk's Budweiser Gardens show. This time it's Peter Dreimanis in a shot of moody intensity, fully consumed by the music.

Chvrches has maintained their status as one of my favourite bands. And they put on a fun and entertaining live show. I liked this shot of Lauren Mayberry from their most recent stop in Toronto at Rebel.

Here's another one of those hard-to-get jump shots from one of the masters of the scissor-jump. Sam Coffey and The Iron Lungs are one of my favourite bands and definitely one of my most-seen bands. This shot from their show at The Garrison's birthday party captures the band's amazing live energy. And they seem to like it too!

Luna Li is easily one of my favourite discoveries of 2019. I love everything about her music, her performance and her guitar playing. I love this shot of her in bliss at Royal Mountain Records BBQ. I really hope to catch more Luna Li shows soon and I really hope Royal Mountain Records puts on more of these awesome summer shows every year.

Drummers have it tough from a photography perspective. They're usually at the back of the stage, often in darkness and obscured by cymbals. I just had to include this shot of the Bob Mould Band's Jon Wurster from their show at The Phoenix Concert Theatre. Jon is an awesome drummer with amazing energy and always seems to be having a great time. This shot captures that.

As I mentioned, a Yungblud show is an onslaught of energy and it's hard to tear your eyes and lens away from the man himself. However, there's lots of other fun going on with the rest of the band. This shot of guitarist Adam Warrington taking an innovative approach to in-song tuning is a moment I was happy I managed to capture from their Danforth Music Hall show. 

The Effens have become one of my favourite bands. I love their tunes, I love the live shows. This shot from a show at The Baby G captures the mood and energy of an Effens show. Check out their music and get yourself to one of their shows.

Haviah Mighty is an intense performer. She had a great year with many great performances and winning the Polaris Prize for her album 13th Floor.  This close-up shot of her performing at Royal Mountain Records BBQ captures that intensity quite nicely, I'd say.

Photographer Brad Goldstein has been capturing some great shots for One In Ten Words. I love this awesomely composed and captured shot of Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard from their moist show at Echo Beach.

SWMRS know how to impress with their live show. Their performance at The Phoenix Concert Theatre was easily one of the best live shows of 2019. I can't wait to hear what they come up with on their future albums and I know I want to be at all their future Toronto shows.

Reignwolf puts on an intense and engaging live show. At The Mod Club, he wasn't content to stay on stage to rock out. He came out into the crowd and wedged himself between the bar and the balcony. I love an artist who goes the extra kilometre to put on an unforgettable show.

The Twilight Sad are one of my favourite bands. Their songs are so emotionally rich and enveloping. The live show, like this one at Velvet Underground, is where it comes together; the music surrounds and swirls around and consumes my emotions. I think I spent most of this show crying in the crowd. It was great and much-needed therapy after being disappointed to miss their other Toronto show earlier in the year. It's no wonder It Won’t Be Like This All the Time came in at number one on my Favourite Albums of 2019 list and "I'm Not Here [Missing Face]" came in at number five on my Favourite Songs of 2019 list.

Hollerado are an awesome, high-energy band with amazing power pop tunes. 2019 was the year that they'd call it quits and left us with some amazing shows. This one at Royal Mountain Records BBQ, where they were the surprise special guests, was an amazing show. I decided to put down the camera and enjoy their last-ever show at Danforth Music Hall as a fan. Farewell, Hollerado, thanks for the tunes and all the best for a bright future of new adventures.

There's something special about catching a rapidly up-and-coming band in an intimate venue and watching them win over a crowd. It was like that seeing The Anti-Queens play the Elora Legion at a Riverfest Elora afterparty. This band is amazing and I can't wait to see them ascend.

Skinny Lister are always fun. This show at Rebel where they helped warm up the crowd for The Interrupters was awesome. It's always exciting to see bassist Scott Milsom toss around that double bass like it's nothing. And this time I didn't almost get it in the face. Haha. 

I've mentioned Dizzy a whole bunch on these virtual pages. This shot is from their sold-out show at The Mod Club. It's so amazing to see this band go from the first time I saw them at Hillside, to a sold-out show like this. I'm looking forward to more amazing music and shows from them as we go forward.

I love live concerts. Could you guess? They're irreplaceable and unique moments in time that are always special. This shot from Telekinesis' show at The Drake Underground captures a special moment within a special moment where Michael Benjamin Lerner put on a solo performance of "I Saw Lightning". It's the song that the couple pictured used as their wedding song. Cool.

The audience is an essential element in a great live show. Their energy feeds the band and a cycle is created that brings a show higher and higher. This shot from Chastity's show at The Rec Room captures that insane energy between band and audience. This show was also special because Alexisonfire showed up with their instruments for a surprise set to finish off the night.

Chvrches at Rebel - Concert Photos

The addictive Chvrches track "The Mother We Share" is where it started for me, as with so many others. The tune is so incredible, and then the band just kept creating more and more amazing tunes. And as they let us into their world, we see such kind, positive, inspiring and empowering people. It's no secret that Chvrches are one of my favourite bands.

This show Sunday night at Rebel was the band's third stop in Toronto on the Love is Dead tour and their growing popularity showed in the bigger venue and the associated bigger crowd at this show. It's so nice to see such a diverse and growing crowd at a show by such a great band. Maybe it was just me, but it seemed that there were a lot more families with small children at this show. Always great to see families enjoying music together.

Chvrches always put on a great show and this performance was no different. Their music and Lauren Mayberry's stage presence always impress and keep me riveted throughout their set. This time out, it felt like they stepped up the light show with the wall of spotlights behind them and the strong lights that twisted and filled the larger venue.

The set spanned the band's discography and had the crowd dancing throughout the show. It was the final tune, "Never Say Die", that seemed to get the biggest singalong.

If you want, check out my photos of Chvrches from the previous shows I've photographed at Yonge-Dundas Square for NXNE, at The Danforth Music Hall in 2018 and at The Danforth Music Hall in 2015.

Speedy Ortiz did a great job opening up this show. Check out my photos of their set here.

And here are a bunch of Chvrches tracks from the band's setlist.

"Get Out"

"Miracle"

"Recover"

"Leave a Trace"

"Clearest Blue"

"The Mother We Share"

Best of: Top 25: My favourite concert photos of 2018

The experience of the concert itself cannot be separated from the photos. The photos are a reminder of what was; a method of communicating what the show was like. I can't objectively say, "This is a great photo from a performance I just didn't dig." So, my favourite concert photos may as well be my favourite concerts, or performances of the year. They capture, in image form, something special from a performance that moved me.

Click through on the venue/festival names for the full posts of photos.

As always, a special thank you to all the wonderful industry people who let me into the festivals and venues to make these photos and take in these shows, and to you for looking at the photos, reading my words, and listening to the music.

And if you haven't checked them out yet, follow the links to my Favourite Songs of 2018 and Favourite Albums of 2018 posts. It was a great year for music!

I couldn't be more pleased with this shot of Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne at Riverfest Elora. After shooting from the pit, I got a good spot to take in the rest of the show. It gave me a perfect spot to capture Wayne Coyne surfing across the crowd in his hamster ball. I love the balloons, the fans' hands and Wayne's pose in the ball. Check out all the rest of my shots from this set here, including the laser hands and an exploding, confetti filled balloon. Woot!

July Talk are one of my favourite live bands. They attract huge crowds and create a frenzy every time they play. I knew going in that this show at The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern for CMW was going to be crazy due to the intimate size of the venue combined with their fans' enthusiasm. This shot captures the band, some of the crowd and the scrum of photographers at the front to capture it all. What a crazy time!

Dizzy has become one of my favourite bands with their intimate tunes and Katie Munshaw's unselfconscious and emotive stage presence. This shot from Field Trip captures the joy of Katie's performance perfectly.

Frightened Rabbit is one of my favourite bands. I love the songs so much. I was so happy to see their performance at The Mod Club celebrating the tenth anniversary of The Midnight Organ Fight. I never thought that it would be my last time ever seeing Scott Hutchison perform. Scott's passing broke my heart for so many reasons. I didn't know him personally, but I'm saddened that his illness caused him to take his life. We need more awareness of mental health issues and need more help so that people like Scott get the help they need to live another day and help others.

I'd never seen Yeah Yeah Yeahs perform live until Field Trip. I loved their show and loved them again at Osheaga. This shot of Karen O typifies their performance and the spectacle they put on while playing such amazing tunes.

One of my favourite bands: Chvrches. One of my favourite venues: The Danforth Music Hall. And one of my favourite lenses: the fisheye. What more can I say?

A very early 2018 show by Alexis Krauss and the rest of Sleigh Bells at The Mod Club yielded this shot. It took quite a bit of post-processing but I love how it turned out. The band always puts on a high-energy show and I just love their music.

Pale Waves puts on a polished show and Heather Baron-Gracie delivers some awesome stage moves. I liked this one from their show at The Velvet Underground.

At this year's Riverfest Elora, Sam Coffey and The Iron Lungs became my new favourite band. Their songs are amazing, their energy infectious and their Sam's stage presence unparalleled. And I love that I got this shot.

Brutal Youth put on a gigantically intense show at The Horseshoe Tavern ahead of The Creepshow's headlining set. I love this shot, capturing the power of the performance.

Dream Wife has to get recognition as a band that absolutely blew my mind with the power of their performance. They may have been warming up The Horseshoe Tavern crowd for Sunflower Bean, but they made sure not one person in attendance would forget about them. Incredible.

I got to see Johnny Marr twice in 2018. This shot is from the intimate first show at The Velvet Underground. I felt so lucky to be there and to capture this absolute legend of alternative music, songwriting and guitar playing in action. Wow. His performance later in the year at The Phoenix Concert Theatre was amazing as well.

The Hold Steady are one of my favourite bands and put on an incredible live show, thanks in large part to their enthusiastic and dedicated fans. This year, I went to all four nights of their four-night stand at The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern. I only brought my camera on the first night and this is one of my favourite shots. Once again, the fisheye comes into service to capture the whole band on stage.

Yungblud blew my mind with his energy at his NXNE performance at Yonge-Dundas Square. He was hard to keep up with and he provided so many amazing photo opportunities. I just love this moment in particular. The next time I saw him, he had a broken leg, but still put on a manic performance at The Rivoli.

The legalization of cannabis in Canada was a momentous occasion as we became the second country on the planet to legalize recreational cannabis. Local radio station Indie 88 put on a party at The Phoenix Concert Theatre to celebrate and Japandroids headlined. They're one of my favourite bands, they put on a great show and I got both of them in this photo! The rest of my pics are here.

One of the only artists to have two photos on this list, Sam Coffey and The Iron Lungs put on amazing live performances. This shot of Sam with his winged costume from their show at The Phoenix Concert Theatre opening for Frank Turner was just perfect. Now if I could only capture a really good jump shot of him...

This year, photographer Brad Goldstein started contributing to One In Ten Words. His shots are fantastic, but this shot of Leon Bridges at Echo Beach stands out. I look forward to more of Brad's contributions in 2019.

Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue were a huge highlight of Field Trip this summer. I love this shot for the interaction between the band members and how that tambourine kind of becomes a halo.

The colours, the motion, the intensity of this shot sums up a Metric live show. I captured the band as they returned after some time away with a great set at Field Trip.

Dizzy is the other act that made it onto this list with two photos. This one is from their incredible performance at Royal Mountain Records Festival at The Royal Botanical Gardens' Arboretum in Hamilton. The way the sun shines through the stage smoke and the natural backdrop of trees, along with Katie's unbridled joy and enthusiasm make this one of my favourite shots.

I remember being really tired by the end of the first day of Hillside. I dug deep to walk all the way to the stage that Cadence Weapon was performing on. But the shots I was able to get of his performance made it worth it. Here's my favourite from that set. Check out that fierce determination on his face.

Carole Pope is an inspiration; for the music she made, for the battles she fought, for being badass and courageous and bold and confident and trailblazing and empowering. So many people would not be able to live the lives that they can today without people like Carole putting up with and fighting through adversity that no one should have to endure. And the music that Carole made with Rough Trade made a strong impression on me from a very young age. It was an honour to witness her performance at Riverfest Elora and to capture these photos. Special thanks to the wonderful people who let me interrupt their view so I could capture these images.

Barns Courtney puts on a crowd-pleasing performance. I love the way this captures Barns surfing The Danforth Music Hall crowd as he and his band heated things up for The Wombats.

Calpurnia is one of the biggest breakthrough bands of 2018. I saw them perform three times and photographed them twice; first at Royal Mountain Records Festival and then at The Phoenix Concert Theatre. Great band; great tunes; great people. Thanks to the band for sharing my photos, special thanks to Finn: really glad you liked the photo and shared it, and thanks to Calpurnia’s fans for following and liking so many of my shots this year. Stick around for all the great music I’ll continue to capture in photos.

The ambience at a festival or concert does a lot to contribute to the experience. The setting for Royal Mountain Records Festival at The Royal Botanical Gardens' Arboretum in Hamilton was so idillic; the wide open space, so perfectly surrounded by mature trees and the fact that they left the back of the stage open to that natural backdrop, left a solid and positive impression on me. This post has links to every performer from that magical day. I can't wait for more festivals on this beautiful site.